CHRISTCHURCH.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume I, Issue 20, 13 December 1890, Page 1

CHRISTCHURCH.

(By Telegraph.—From our Own Correspondent.) December nth, 1890. By the S. S. Tarawera, the following horses were shipped to take part at the A. R. C. ■StitirtneT Meeting : —Medallion, Lebel. Crack- § l hdt, Bay King, Dudu and St. Malo. Messrs. P. WW, E. Cutts, R. Mason, W. Clifford, W. Brown, and W. White, the well-known sportsinen, were passengers by : the same steamer.

•'(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT). December sth. The. long drawn out Dunedin Spring Meeting was brought to a close on Tuesday, and as. just on £29,000 was passed through the machines, arid The stakes were not over big, it may be deemed a "financial success. In other respects it could scarcely be considered satisfactory, as ' the interest was not sustained, the attendance on-the last day, the trotting day, being quite meagre)' At the : outside there were not more than 2000 people on the course on Tuesday, and this drawn from so large a population as Dunedin, and considering that over a fourth -tif the number were turf habitues, it shows that the general public had become full of the game. The D. J. C. would be studying their own interests I think in cutting the meeting down to a'two-day’s’one. With the same amount of 'sdded money a really -attractive bill of fare for two <ays could foe made up. For all this some >6X citing racing was seen-ou each'of the four days of the'meeting just 'over. The feature of the ‘meeting was of course the success of Dan O’Brien’s representatives, his winnings representing about a third of the whole given. The stirring was not a feature; it was excecrably bad in the extreme, and more than one race was secured by the advantage given by Mr. Driver kt the starring post. But it has come to this at the Forbury; no one expects good starting, and it would indeed be a feature were the fields for even one day despatched on fairly ei en terms. There is j'ust this to be said, it makes the glorious uncertainty of the game and anything in a race has a show, while big dividends may confidently be looked for while the present flag-holder of the D.J.C. holds the position. Last week I briefly touched on the first day’s events, and I then inadvertently stated that Hazel was the only representative Nordenfeldt had running at the meeting. Two others claiming as their sire the worthy son of Musket figured prominently, these being Lebel and Melinite, both from Mr. Stead’s stable. Each of them won an event, so that all the Nordenfeldt’ engaged scored. By the way, the racing magnates of Dunedin and the squire of Yaldhurst have, it is .gratifying to know, completely buried the hatchet. Mr. Stead was not present to see his youngsters perform, foeing engaged in the exciting election contest for a seat in Parliament. A favourite double herejust now is Stead for Avon and Medallion lor the Auckland Derby. But to return to our .muttons. The Hurdles on the second day Showed a marked reversal of form in Ixion, who, on-account of the ignominious display on the first day, was chucked into the handicap. .The dead bird of the first day was Romulus—•the ;moral that did not come off—was not

running, and the son of Le Loup simply romped home with Little Arthur again second. Ahua, whose previous whipping in performance, did not induce the handicapper to relieve him of much weight, came in with the crawlers. The chief race of the second day and the second most valuable prize at the meeting, the President’s Handicap, one mile and a half, served to show that Freedom has been very much underestimated or else Wolverine has been much overrated. The New Zealand Cup winner has always been thought to be a bit of a wonder at a mile and a half, and carrying Bst. 121 b. to Freedom’s Bst. 71b. the race was regarded over as between them. The start was about the best given by Mr. Driver. Hazel, in the interest of Freedom, cut out the running at a smart pace. Before a mile had been covered the filly was done with, and her falling back left the favourite in front, with St. Malo at his girths. White, on Freedom, had never let the field get far away from him, and once in the straight he called upon the Cup winner, who at once responded, and easily disposing of the other two won by a couple of lengths from St. Malo. Derritt was wrath to get an effort out of Wolverine, who, altho’ looking well to the eye, must be somewhat below his true form. However, Freedom’s double victory stamps him as a colt of merit. He is a cut-and-come sort of gentleman; one of old Tasman’s sort. Lebel, Morpheus (who got away badly) and Caj’olery fought out a good finish in the Criterion Stakes, passing the post in the order named with a neck dividing each. The Onslow Plate was a mere exercise canter for St. Andrew, who, however, was put down by Florrie and Union Flag later in the afternoon in the Mussellburgh Plate, four furlongs. St Andrew, who had a call in the betting, got very badly away and was unable to make up his lost ground. He made amends next day in the Commemoration Plate, five furlongs. Here Clifford, who had replaced Page, got his mount well away and was never headed, Florrie, the best backed, being second. How Heather Bell came to be so little fancied for the Spring Handicap it is hard to say. The filly had shown capital form and had to put up only 6 st. 91b. She won somewhat easily, paying dividends of over £3O and £4O. The following day the daughter of Albany —A thole scored another win in the Grand Stand Handicap, and again, although her impost was only 6st. 121 b., on a scale ranging from Ruby Bst. 51b. to Cinnator 6st. 71b , she paid the substantial dividend of £ll. The owner is said not to have benefited very much by the win, but a backer from Oamaru who had scooped on the filly at Christchurch entrusted her on the occasion of her first win with £6, his invstment returning him £l9O. On the second occasion he had a tenner invested, and received another century. In the nicely bred Florrie, Dan O’ Brien has one of the smartest fillies in the colonies. Her two firsts in the Dunedin Stakes and Musselburgh Plate and her second to St. Andrew in the Commemoration Plate were genuine performances, and prove her to be possessed of a brilliant turn of foot. She was a bit lucky in the Musselburgh, as St. Andrew got left, but then again the colt was lucky in the Commemoration, in which Florrie was very slow in beginning. Ixion on the third day won the Pacific Hurdles j ust as easily as he did the race the previous day. notwithstanding that he was giving away lots of

weight to everything else. Ahua, of course, not being included. A warm favourite in Occident was bowled over on the third day in the St. Andrew’s Handicap. Sultan’s brother, Prime Warden (7st.) getting home with nothing to spare from Occident’s (Bst. 101 b.) stable companion Mariner (6st. 51b.), the favourite being third. The stable evidently intended to win with the light-weight, and how the result would have been had Mariner being beaten some distance from home it is hard to say. I think myself Prime Warden, who promises to be as good as his distinguished brother, would again defeat the Australian with like weights up. The handsome Melinite carrying topweight was made favourite for the Maiden Two-year-old Plate, and splendidly handled by Clifford had the race won when the flag fell. It was rather pitiful to see old Garibaldi coming out to compete with a lot of scrubbers in the Selling Hurdle Race on the concluding day. Jimmy Walls who had the mount never gave the others a ghost of a show. The old fencer was entered to be sold for £2O, and at that price he was bonght in by his owner who, let us hope, will spell the horse for a 1 bit at all events. The Trots call for no special mention, except that the favourite, the South Canterbury horse, Joe (54secs.), won the three mile event in a field of twenty-five, and that the Christchurch division had a sad take down in the twomile event. Sunlight (29secs.) having 380 out of the 850 investments on the machine against her number, there being no fewer than twentythree starters. In the end, old Silver Bell* (26secs.) won easily in smin. 46secs. The dividend was over £7. Sunlight gave her friends here a trial considerably under smin. 40secs., and with the handicap the mare received the race was supposed to be a moral for her. Tui, the winner of the Pony Trot, paid her backers £l5 10s. and £39 Bs. The correspondent of the Press states that five of the tickets on Tui were held by Invercargill hotelkeepers, who entrusted a boy with the money to put on another horse, but the messenger mistook instructions, to the benefit of investors. Many of the knowing .ones in Christchurch backed Ben Trovato in the Tapuna Park High-Weight Welter. The horse was little fancied on the machine and paid £l3 7s. and £lO 10s.

December 6th. Mr. Pyne, the well-known auctioneer of the firm of Pyne & Co., after acting for a season or two as one of the handicapping committee of the C.J.C. has resigned, and his resignation has been received with regret. Mr. Pyne may be a very able weight adjuster, but perhaps he found it a most unsatisfactory task to have to make one of three, and unless we can have better work in the future, it would be just as well to see his commendable action followed by Mr. Ericson and Mr. G. P. Williams. By the way, Mr. C. Hood Williams would, I think, make a worthy successor to Mr. Pyne. Indeed, that gentleman is, I think, one of the most competent men we have here at present, and it is a pity that this handicapping by committee cannot be knocked on the head, and one good man appointed. Before this letter appears you will doubtless have an opportunity of seeing Mr. P. Butler and his representatives at your end. He was to have gone to-day, but I see the Te Kapo does not leave before to-

morrow night. The other day he told me that he would probably make Bay King his second string, in which case you will see Crackshot and the son of Cadogan—Corcyra doing battle for “ popular Pat.” I had a chat with Mason the other day, and he told me that he did not know whether Mr. Stead would send anything up or not, though it was quite on the cards that he would do so. It was simply a question as to whether the horses would be ready. At the time Mason had just returned from Dunedin and I could not get anything definite from him, but my impression is that you will see Medallion and one or more two-year-olds engaged, and Dan O’Brien is almost certain to have a cut in with some of his. Florrie is rather excitable, and travelling may not be considered good for her. On the other hand she may be improved thereby, though travelling two-year-olds so far north has not been a practice with southern sportsmen. Besides, the attractions are not now so good as they were formerly. I fancy you will see the burly form of Ted Cutts amongst you, and Dudu will accompany him if treated any way well, as the Chokebore Lodge trainer comtemplates mating the old mare with Nordenfeldt. I cannot help thinking what a pity it is that this mare should not have an opportunity of distinguishing herself in races that suit her. She has been run out of her place a great deal. In and about Auckland, of even in Australia, she would win mote races than ever she is likely to do down this way, as she always runs in the best of company, and over distances that do not suit her with the weight she gets. Mr. Ormond is almost certain to take St. Andrew to Auckland, and I have no doubt you will hear much about improved form, also that he was waiting back for something further afield when here at the C.J.C. Meeting. There are people talking that way down here, but I will not have him as a Derby horse. The Bst lolb and the mile and a half will settle him, though he may run more forward than he did in the C.J.C. Derby. However, if you have Medallion, Crackshot, Freedom and St. Andrew with you, that quartette alone should make an interesting race of the Great Northern Derby. You have had my opinion about Crackshot. I told you prior to the C.J.C. Meeting in your issue of October 25th, that I thought he could stay, and he has done very well with Butler since the meeting, and Medallion \Vill have to be very well to beat him again, as he, like St. Andrew and Freedom, has been steadily on the improve. Young horses do well through the summer months, and the bit of racing has * done Dan, O’Brien’s colt Freedom a lot of good. At Forbury, where the going is never fast, with Bst 71b, or with just 31bs under his Derby weight, Freedom ran his mile and a half in 2 min. 42 secs., which iS secs, faster than the C.J.C. Derby was run in. I shall have another opportunity of giving you my impressions on this event. lam now looking for the weights for the Auckland Cup and Steeplechase, announced to appear to-day. Mr. Evitt may be depended on to send them through to your end at the eleventh hour. I notice that the book says weights will appear on the ,sth, but if they do not come out till too late to appear throughout New Zealand on the due date, owners are disappointed. Owners this afternoon have been purchasing the evening papers expecting to see the weights, and to those who have shipping arrangements to make like the southeners, it is important that these matters, should hot be treated so lightly by our admiral. Was he ever known to be “ on time ? ”

December 7th. I havn’t been much amongst the horsey boys yet, consequently have not heard any talk about the Auckland Cup weights—the ’Chase has ho interest for us this year, as we have no representatives — but my own impression is that J.O.E. has not done so badly, though he has perhaps started on a rather high scale.' Tirailleur is a stayer, but whether a weight carrier I think has yet to be proved. He has nibs over w.f.a., and is made gibs better than Crackshot, and is 61bs better than Medallion, i2lbs better than Dudu, i4lbs better than Cissy and St. Andrew, 15lbs better than Hilda, zylbs better than Cynisca, zglbs Wolverine and Strephon, 3olbs Whisper, and so on. Many are now beginning to regard Wolverine’s New Zealand Cup win as a fluke. He was, perhaps, a bit off at Dunedin. Crackshot is allowed to

have improved 31bs from November to December, and making allowance for that he is only meeting Wolverine on 81bs better terms than over the two miles here —the scale of weights being all in favour of the older horse, who as the race was run on November 4th, could have put up another stone. My present fancies are for Strephon, Whisper, and Wolverine if the latter goes north, and if I had to declare for one straight out at this stage I should take Whisper. : Should Medallion go north and do good work before the day he may be a starter for the Cup, but unless he is really very well I don’t think he could win, and it may be that the Derby only—as here —will be his mission. I hear that a few buyers from this quarter will go north to see the dispersal of the Sylvia Park Stud, and I have an idea that some of the mares will come this way as well as their yearlings. Bob Derritt, who has won more races this season than any other jockey, did not score a single victory at Dunedin. He rode four seconds, and four times was he beaten on different horses and by different horses and horsemen. The total money put through the machines at Dunedin was as against last year, but then there was no Exhibition this time. What a time some of the totalisator price men have had 1 Two of their number last week ran up against a snag in the person of a backer, who eased them of ° r > rather, who “struck” them for that amount over Ben Trovato’s win. They will feel it for some time to come. Why it is more than they had in the New Zealand Cup, and it is hard to say what possessed them to gamble to that tune.